FULL DISCLOSURE: I've always been more of a conservative than libertarian. But I think there is a pretty big intersection between the two when it comes to individual liberty. The conservative view on law enforcement is tied to the rule of law. Breaking laws is bad and should be subject to persecution. The libertarian view on law enforcement is probably similar but with the major caveat that laws are meant to be as minimally invasive as possible, and so as few as necessary should exist. In that regard, I'd say I lean more libertarian than conservative. Or maybe small government conservative would be the best description.

******************

No matter your political bent, authorities are always susceptible to abuse of power. That seems to be the case in this really touchy video (if you love dogs or are sensitive, don't watch it).

A man apparently was arrested, and his dog shot, both without sufficient cause. The apparent motive of police was that he was videoing police activity. Or he was too close to the police perimeter. Or he was non-compliant. Or that he has a civil suit against the Hawthorne police already. Or something else.

Warning - graphic video.

Via the Libertarian Republic, you can see the entire story here. There's a lot of information on the story there, including other videos of the incident from different angles.

Police appear to have abused their powers in this instance - a complete over-reaction that is not justified. If the details in the story prove accurate, the police should be fired or suspended. The police department should have to pay compensatory and punitive damages as well. None of it unfortunately, will bring back the dog.

I say dogs before people. But that being said, everything is fucked up.

I Blogged this week •In San Diego alone, 13 Federal and local law enforcement agencies have compiled more than 36 million license-plate scans in a regional database since 2010 with the help of Federal Homeland Security grants. The data is "stored" for two years.

So we have an expert in Florida testify that George Zimmerman on his back getting beat to crap was insufficient to warrant the use of a firearm......meanwhile, in California we have a cop stating that a dog is a threat and kills it. Where is the logic? Disturbing, to say the least.....

Over reaction! Nothing but over reaction. The police appear to be entirely at fault! Why were they arresting this man anyway? They should be suspended without pay while this unfortunate incident is investigated. I'm a dog lover and have 3 small ones---this makes me sick. I too, am a conservative, and normally support most police action, but with the government abuses going on in Washington and around the nation I'm just sick of those in authority who abuse power in the name of public safety.

I looked at the video very closely and the officer had his gun drawn on the dog for a while before shooting. The dog backed off and the officer approached the dog with his hand down.

At this point you can argue that the officer was attempting to calm the dog. Dogs sense emotion. When the officer approached the dog with his gun pointed at it the final time, he did so quickly which was a mistake at best. The dog reacted and the officer fired. Then he continued firing, which was another mistake.

With all that said, the officer who shot the dog was not the real cause of the situation. He was rushing to defend the other officers, just as the dog was looking to defend his owner. The actual cause of the problem was the officer at the 3:00 mark who needlessly smacked the owner of the dog and instigated the entire incident.

"When compiling sharp conservative thoughts and takes for my Morning Jolt newsletter late at night and early in the morning, I find myself coming back to Left Coast Rebel again and again." -Jim Geraghty, National Review"Hey Tim, I appreciate the kind email and the plug on your site. It’s rare that my first feedback isn’t hate mail from a disgruntled statist! You carry on too – we’ve got our work cut out for us." -Tad DeHaven, Cato Institute"Thanks so much for all YOU do for liberty and individual rights. I appreciate your strong voice for capitalism. We're changing the culture -- keep it up!" -Jonathan Hoenig, Fox News"Congrats Tim. You have arrived." -GatewayPundit"Before we sell California to China or go Lex Luther on the San Andreas Fault, let's be sure to save the Left Coast Rebel." -Barack Obama's Cousin, Milton R. Wolf, M.D.

"I like LCR because it seems like more thought goes into posts there than at many other blogs that focus more on horse-race politics." -Nate Nelson, United Liberty

Legal Ease

This weblog is licensed under a Creative Commons License.
The opinions expressed are those of the respected authors alone. Any material posted here is made available for educational and informative purposes, and as such constitutes a ‘fair use’ of any such copyrighted material as provided for in Title 17 U.S.C., section 107 of the US Copyright Law. The material on this blog is provided without profit for benign research and educational purposes.